BRIAN

Michael wiped the tears out of his eyes when it didn’t get me up to try and figure out what caused it. Jenny saw him and got up to run to him, and his confusion at seeing her told me he wasn’t here because he wanted to see his daughter. 

“Why do you guys have Jenny?” Michael asks.

“Mel and Lindsay had something to do, so we agreed to get her,” Justin tells him.

“I need to talk to Brian,” He tells him.

“Emmett texted, saying he and Mom want the kids input on tomorrow. I can take them over there for an hour and then meet you at home,” Justin tells me.

“I wanted us to spend time together,” I tell Justin.

“We will, but do you really want to get in the middle of the planning?” Justin asks, knowing I only wanted to do this for the kids.

“Make sure to mention the dresses to Mom,” I tell him, leaning over to kiss him.

“Talk to him,” Justin tells me.

“I really don’t want to,” I tell him.

“Michael do I need to drop Jenny off with Mel or are you going to take her?” Justin asks, ignoring me.

“I came to talk to Brian, could you take her home?” Michael asks.

Michael and I went to the loft, instead of anywhere we could be overheard. He sat on one of the stools, and I got us a couple waters and hand him one. He fiddled with the label and at that point I knew we’d be here all night if I didn’t say something.

“Why did you show up at the restaurant if you weren’t there to get Jenny?” I ask.

“I knew you were going there, because I called Mel to see if they needed Ben and me to take Jenny,” He tells me.

“That still doesn’t explain why you came, since you didn’t show up to get your daughter,” I tell him.

“Eli told me something that Robin mentioned to him, but I didn’t believe it. I know you wouldn’t do that to me,” He mumbles.

“What wouldn’t I do?” I ask.

“I tried to tell everyone that you and Justin only decided to live together. Only Robin said that Brandon, of all people, said you and Justin got… Only it has to be wrong because you would have told me first,” Michael tells me.

“Is the word you don’t want to say, ‘married’? If it is, then the answer is yes. I’m sure you can figure I why I didn’t want to tell you,” I tell him.

“All I could think of was that you realized it was a mistake and didn’t want anyone to know until you could fix it,” Michael tells me.

“Since Jen, Emmett, and Ted know, try again,” I tell him, going over to pack up some things I forgot when I was in a hurry to get back to Justin.

“So once again, everyone but me knows,” He says, angry.

“I knew you wouldn’t be happy for me. It’s something I told Justin when he was worried about Daphne not knowing that we got married. She would be happy for us, you don’t even want to acknowledge Justin’s place in my life. Instead, you seem to want to relive our past, as if to show Justin he didn’t have a place in it, which he doesn’t. He’s my future,” I tell him.

Michael got up and followed me. With each thing that I packed, his expression became more dismayed. 

“You can’t rent the loft,” He tells me.

“Actually, since I own it, I can. I don’t see the reason for it to stay empty when I won’t be living here anymore,” I tell him.

“Don’t you want to keep it available? You might need it again,” Michael really wasn’t getting this.

“For what? My husband and I agreed to live in the house he owns. If we don’t live there it will only be because we want a bigger house, not to move back here. Gus and Gwen wouldn’t have rooms of their own here. In truth, the only other thing I might do with the loft in the future, is sell it. It’s the past Mikey, a place that no longer fits the life I plan to live. Did you keep your apartment after you and Ben bought your house? No. Because it was time to move forward, towards the life you and Ben wanted,” I tell him, finishing up and really ready to end this conversation.

“That’s different,” He tells me.

“I don’t think it is. Like you, I married the man I want to spend my life with, raise a family with, and grow old with; isn’t that the reason you got married?” I ask.

“Why him?” He asks, ignoring everything I asked.

“Why not you? Isn’t that what you really want to know? Because I need someone like him in my life. He doesn’t need me to define who he is, and with him, I’m not defined by my past. Michael, you wanted someone to give you an identity; for you, a relationship means letting someone else tell you how to walk, talk, and even what to think. For Ben, that was great, because he likes that you look to him for things, but for me it would have driven me away. I was never going to look to you as more than a friend. But our friendship has to change, because you can’t be my best friend, Justin has to be that, the way Ben should be yours,” I tell him.

“You make it sound like I don’t have a place in your life. Everyone else does, but not me. Don’t you think it’s strange that Justin was having lunch with Brandon? I did when Eli told me what Robin told him,” Michael tells me.

“Brandon’s grandmother knows Justin’s. And no, I don’t think it’s strange, since the only reason I wasn’t at lunch with them was because I needed to get work done. Not because Justin was out with Brandon for whatever reason you came up with in your head. You need to figure out if you want us to stay friends or not, if you do then it means respecting my husband’s place in my life. Something you can do when I’m not around. If you can do that then you can come to dinner tomorrow night with everyone else, otherwise don’t show, because I don’t need you there ruining the reason we’re having the dinner to begin with,” I tell him.

“What, to show off you married Justin?” He asks.

“We wanted to do it because Gus and Gwen missed the joining of our lives. Showing Justin off like a prize isn’t why I married him. I hope that’s not why you wanted to marry Ben. Now, I need to go home to my life,” I tell him, grabbing my bags and opening the loft door.

JUSTIN

The kids had a lot of ideas, and I loved that Emmett didn’t even blink when Gwen said we should have dinner at a haunted castle, with lots of food.

Gus answered before Emmett could explain the reason we couldn’t just get a castle. “You don’t need a castle, you're already a princess to Dad,” Gus tells her.

I called Lindsay to tell her I’d drop of Jenny after we got done at my mom’s house. My mom took the phone and told Lindsay and Mel they were invited to the reception. When she hung up, she told me Lindsay said she’d come to get Jenny from here.

“At least we don’t have to worry about Lindsay acting like Michael,” Emmett tells us.

“She came around pretty fast, I think a lot of it is that we have friends in common. Michael just thinks we’re stealing all his friends,” I tell him.

“Honey, we used you to escape the friends that came with the cult,” Emmett tells me, laughing.

“Justin, Mom and the Aunts want to be here tomorrow too,” My mom tells me.

“If anyone can keep Michael in line, the Hens can,” Gus whispers to Emmett, loud enough for my mom and me to hear.

“I can just see it, Rose and Mary with Michael between them,” Emmett said, before writing it on the seating chart.

“We should put Deb there too,” Gus tells him.

“True. Between the three of them, Michael will be too busy ducking slaps in the head,” Emmett tells him.

“You agree, don’t you Dad?” Gus says, not even realizing it was the first time he said that to me directly.

“I think it’s great, son,” I tell him.

Mel opened the door, and I see Brian standing there with Lindsay talking. It was great to see tears that came with a smile as Lindsay bear hugged Brian. He sat next to me, grabbing the seating chart.

“The Hens are coming?” He asks.

“Where my mother goes, so go her sisters. Get used to it, they like you,” My mom tells Brian.

“How did it go with Michael?” I whisper to him.

“We’ll see tomorrow, if not, I’ll set the Hens loose on him,” Brian tells me, kissing me.